Twice in a Lifetime
by Princess Star Neko
Summary: -Max fanfic!- It’s been two years since his adventures traveling through the Hoenn region with Ash, Brock, and May came to an end, and now it’s time for Max to shine! Join Max as he travels through the Pokémon world in his search to become a Pokémon Maste
1. Prologue: A New Journey

**_Disclaimers:_** As much as I may ___want_ to claim ownership of this production, I can't because **_Pokémon_** belongs to a whole lot of different companies that I can't remember the names of at the moment. Any characters that appear in this fic that is not a part of the original series, belong to me so don't take them without asking first.

**_Summary:_** It's been two years since his adventures traveling through the Hoenn region with Ash, Brock, and May came to an end, and now it's time for Max to shine! Join Max as he travels through the Pokémon world in his search to become a Pokémon Master.

**_Twice in a Lifetime_**  
Prologue: A New Journey  
By: Princess Star Neko  


Late one night in Petalburg City, Maxwell Stanton, or Max to his family and friends, was busy packing his backpack with everything he would need to begin his Pokémon journey the next morning.

At ten years old, he now stood at 4'1", and had grown out his hair so that it hung just past his shoulders, and now were contacts instead of glasses, though he still kept a pair in a carrying case in case he ever needed them.

'_I can't believe that I'm **finally** going on my Pokémon journey._' Max thought happily to himself, as he walked over to his bookshelf and started pulling out a few Pokémon guidebooks, '_This'll be **so** cool! Now I can prove to everyone that I have what it takes to be a Master just like Ash._'

In the last few months, Max had been keeping tabs on the Indigo Plateau tournament that was being broadcast live on TV, that Ash was competing in again, and cheered as Ash came in first place in the finals, after a long drag out fight with his Sceptile against another trainers NidoKing.

'_I'm definitely going to pick a Treecko as my starter Pokémon tomorrow, if it kills me._' Max thought to himself as he remembered Ash's battle at the conference, feeling the urge to get the grass type growing stronger with each day, '_Treecko makes a great fighter in battle..._'

He stuffed some miniaturized pokéballs into one of the compartments on the side of the backpack. He had been saving up his allowance for this special occasion, and had already spent nearly half of it buying up Pokémon food from the store, along with some small cans of homemade Pokémon food that Brock had sent him from Kanto, medicine, and extra pokéballs so he'd be prepared for his journey. His parents had given him his very own PokéNavi for his birthday last month, while May had given him a PokéGear.

He had his clothes already handing over his chair so they would be ready for him to put on when he got up in the morning. Already having made a couple of sandwiches to eat for lunch, that were waiting in a bag in the refrigerator downstairs.

'_Let's see now, have I forgotten anything?_' Max thought a few minutes later as he sat on the edge of his bed, as he looked around the room for any sign that he had left something out, as he pulled out a list from his pants' back pocket. '_I have an extra pair of clothes already packed; extra pokéballs; food's all ready to go downstairs; toothbrush and combs packed up; PokéNavi and PokéGear are on my dresser..._'

"So I see the half pint's finally going to set out on his own Pokémon journey." A familiar voice said teasingly from his bedroom door, cutting into Max's thoughts.

Max turn to see his older sister standing there, with her Beautifly resting on top of her head and her Blaizeken standing next to her.

May Stanton had filled out considerably in the last couple of years since Ash and Brock had left Hoenn after Ash had gotten all of his badges and competed in the Hoenn League conference at Ever Grande City.

At age sixteen, she now stood at 5'5", and now wore her hair long so that it now hung all the way down her back, just above her knees, and she now wore her red bandana as a ribbon tied around her hair to make a ponytail. She was currently dressed in a pair of blue green shorts, with white boots, and a white t-shirt with a picture of a Beautifly on it.

"Hey sis, when did you get home?" Max said, as he turned back to his packing, "I thought you'd still be busy with that Pokémon Contest in Slateport City?"

"What? And miss my baby brother's big day? As if." May demanded, sounding a bit peeved that he would ask her something like that, though the smile on her face said otherwise, as she gave a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders.

"Oh, really?" Max asked, his eyes narrowing suspiciously at May.

"Yes really. I ___did_ promise to give you a life to Little Root Town, so you wouldn't have to hurry, remember?" May said earnestly, before a mischievous look appeared on her features as she saw the look Max was giving her, "Besides the contest doesn't start until the day after tomorrow, so I'll have plenty of time to teleport back to Slateport using my Kadabra if I need to."

"Oh jeez thanks May," Max said sarcastically, as he glared at his sister through narrowed eyes, "I ___so_ feel the love in this room."

"Max you take things too seriously," May said cheerfully, giggling a bit as she walked over to Max, and wrapped her arms around his neck in a comforting, "I would have come even if I had whether I missed the contest or not. Nothing was going to keep me away from your big day, you know that."

"Whatever you say, May," Max said as he pulled away from May and went over to his desk, patting Blaizeken on the head along the way, "Now if you don't mind I still have to get ready for tomorrow. I don't want to miss the chance to get the starter Pokémon that I want."

"Any idea on what type you want yet?" May asked, as she took a seat on Max's bed, as she watched Max get to work, while Blaizeken sat on the floor in front of her. "Do you plan on getting a Torchic, like I did?"

"No way! Don't you remember that I already told you want type I wanted, May?" Max asked as he glanced over his shoulder at his sister, "I still want to have a Treecko as my starter Pokémon."

"Oh yeah. That's right you did tell me that, right after I got home with Torchic," May said sheepishly, as she rubbed the back of her head, "Sorry Max, I completely forgot. But I was kinda hoping that you'd get a Torchic for your starter like I did."

"Not that there's anything wrong with Torchic's," Max said as he stared at May, before eyeing her Blaizeken who was now frowning at him from it's spot on the floor, as a mischievous grin appeared on his features, "but I ___still_ think that Treecko's way cooler. Torchic's make a weak starter Pokémon for any trainer who's just starting out..."

"Blaze!" Blaizeken cried out as he came to his feet, his eyes glaring at Max, but he calmed down when May put a restraining hand on the fire bird.

"Calm down Pyron. You should know by now Max doesn't mean anything by that comment," May said calmly as she glanced down at her fire Pokémon before it finally settled back down on the carpeted floor.

"Yeah, Pyron! I'm just kidding, as he held his hands up in front of him defensively as if to ward off any attacks from the Fire fowl Pokémon, "Don't blame me if I think Treecko's a cool Pokémon to start off with."

Pyron made a low grumbling sound as he settled back down on the floor next to May as he looked back at Max.

"Not that Torchic's don't have their own good points, though." Max gave the fire Pokémon a small smile, once he saw that bird wasn't going to attack him, "Besides, who knows? Maybe I'll run into a wild Torchic during my journey, I'll catch and train it, and maybe even a Mudkip along the way, if I'm lucky."

"Kids! It's time for bed! You both have a big day," their mother's voice called up from downstairs, "Max your going to have to get to bed early if you want to make it to Professor Birch's on time tomorrow!"

"Okay mom! Hey," May called back, as she turned back to Max, as she pulled out two pokéballs and recalled her Blaizeken and Beautifly, "I hope you remembered to set your alarm clock, Max, so you'll wake up at 7:30, so I can get you to Little Root town before 8:30, Max."

"Don't worry, sis." Max said waving off May's question, as he sat down on the edge of his bed to stretch, "I've got everything prepared, along with my alarm clock preset already. I have my whole journey set out already. I really hope I run into a Poochyena on the way."

"Hey, that reminds me." May said while reaching into her left back pocket and pulled out a miniaturized green and yellow pokéball from her pocket, looked it over for a moment before handing it to Max, "I almost forgot to give you this."

"A pokéball?" Max asked, cocking his head to one side as he took the ball into his hands and looked it over, "What's this for? Is something in it?"

"I stopped at the Pokémon Reserve on my way home, and I talked with Katrina," May said as she took a seat next to him on the bed, lying down on her back, "and told her how you were going to be starting your journey soon."

"So?" Max said, sounding impatient, as he frowned down at the older girl, "I don't see where this is leading to, May."

"Let's just say an old furry friend of yours overheard us," May said, as her smile grew wider as she sat back up and looked Max full in the face. "and he decided it want to help you out on your journey."

"What does that mean?" Max's eyes widened when he heard, as he looked back down at the pokéball he now hold, "Is Mightyena in here?"

"Not exactly. Katrina took me to this area on the reserve where the Mightyena pack had taken residence up in," May said, as her smile widened as she pulled out another pokéball that matched the one she had given Max, except hers had a star sticker on it, "and our old friend Mightyena had a litter of pups. He and Katrina offered up two of his pups to both of us to have."

"How can you tell if you gave me the right pokéball?" Max asked as he eyed the pokéball his sister now held, and looked back at the one in his own hands, "The balls look exactly the same."

"Why do you think I have a sticker on this one?" May said, as she scowled at her younger brother, "I thought you might like the Poochyena in that pokéball better."

"Okay. Come on out Poochyena!" Max cried out as he quickly threw the ball into the air to release the Pokémon that was trapped inside, and sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of the creature that appeared in front of them.

The Poochyena that appeared before them wasn't your usual everyday one that you'd run into in the forests. In fact it seemed to be all wrong.

The color on this Poochyena's fur and eyes was different from your normal Poochyena. Where it's fur was supposed to be dark gray, it was now pitch black, and the areas that were supposed to be black were now pure white, while the color of it's eyes seemed to have been switched around, so that it's irises were now red, with gold pupils.

"Oh my god!" Max exclaimed as he stared at the canine before him, unsure about what he should do, "It's a Shiny Pokémon!"

"Rowr?" Poochyena said, as he looked around the room in confusion before his eyes settled on the two humans in front of him, getting to his feet as he wagged his tail uncertainly as it stared from one human to the other.

"Hey there Poochyena. How are you doing?" May said, smiling down as she kneeled down in front of the pup and earned herself a soft lick, and gave him a brief hug before gently pushing him towards Max, "This is my little brother, Max. He's going to be your trainer as of right now."

Poochyena glanced over at Max, looking him over for a few seconds, before walking over to him, sat on his haunches and put his paws on Max's legs as he looked up at him expectantly.

"Hey Poochyena. I've always wanted a Poochyena ever since I saw your dad all those years ago." Max said, smiling as he reached out a tentative hand towards the dark types head, and gave the canines head a gentle pat, "I really hope we can be friends. Okay?"

"Rowr?" Poochyena said, as he looked up at Max questioningly, before something that oddly resembled a smile appeared on the dark type's canine features, before he nodded his head in agreement to what Max said.

Max scratched one of the dog's ears, smiling a bit as he earned himself a rumbling growl of pleasure from the dog, as it leaned it's head into the scratching.

"So what are you going to name him, Max?" May asked, as she looked at the scene-taking place before her with a huge smile on her features, "I'm calling ___my_ Poochyena Domino."

"I think I'll call him Hyde." Max said, half listening to what May was saying as he kept all of his attention on his new Pokémon. "How does that sound to you boy?"

Hyde cocked his head to one side with a thoughtful look on his canine features, as he considered his new name for a few moments, before letting out a happy bark of approval.

"Glad that you like it, Hyde," Max said, still smiling as he continued scratching Hyde's head.

"You better stop off at the Pokémon reserve on your journey and thank Katrina for this," May said, yawning a bit as she stood up and stretched, "I'm going to bed now. I'll take you to Little Root using my Kadabra, okay Max?"

"Okay May, and goodnight." Max said, as he continued scratching Hyde's head, when he suddenly looked back up at May just as she reached his bedroom door, "Hey May, what does your Poochyena look like?" Is there anything special about yours too?"

"If you mean if she's a Shiny Pokémon too, then yes." May said, as she stopped at the door to look back at Max, "She has blue and silver eyes with brown fur where the gray should be, with red in place of where the black usually is."

"I see all you picked were the pretty Shiny ones." Max said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice as he stared at his sister.

"The two of them were the only ones in Mightyena's litter who were born that way." May said, with a slight shrug of her shoulders as she pulled open the door and stepped out into the hallway, "Night Max."

"Good night May," Max said, as a small yawn escaped from his lips, as he did one more check around the room to make sure he didn't leave anything important behind, before getting up to go put on his pajama's and take out his contacts lens, then climbed into bed and turned off the light.

* * *

Early the next morning, the silence of the Stanton household was suddenly broken by a loud scream, that sent all of the Pokémon roaming outside running.

"Aw! Why didn't ___anybody_ wake me up!" Max's scream rang throughout the entire house, as everyone downstairs could hear the youth's footsteps running across his bedroom door. "I'm going to be ___late_!"

"I see Max is up already," May commented cheerfully as she took a sip from her glass of orange juice, giggling a bit when a loud thump, followed by a low cry of pain from Max's room, and winced. "I hope he's okay up there?"

"What's he ___talking_ about May? I was about to go up and wake him now," Max and May's mom, Caroline, asked as she glanced at the digital clock on the microwave to check the time, and saw that it was only 7:15, "It's still early yet. He still has forty-five minutes for the two of you to get to Little Root town so he can get his Pokémon on time."

"May what did you do?" Her dad, Norman asked, as he looked at her from above his newspaper, his eyes narrowing suspiciously at her.

"Well, you guys know how Max has trouble waking up in the morning?" May asked, as a small smile started to spread over her face, and continued when her parents nodded in agreement to her question, "Well, I ___didn't_ want him to ___accidentally_ oversleep and miss his chance at getting to Professor Birch's on time, ___so_ I..."

"You what?" Norman asked.

"...I snuck into his room while he was asleep," May said, still smiling, just as they heard the bathroom door slamming upstairs, "and I kind of changed the time of his alarm clock so that the hour on the clock reads 8:15 instead, and I also set the alarm to go off at 8:15."

"May, that was a ___mean_ thing to do to your brother," Norman chided, though a grin appeared on his features as he chuckled at what May had done, as he listened to the sounds of Max running around upstairs, "Effective and useful, but ___still_ mean."

"Thanks, dad," May said, giggling a bit as she took another bite of her pancakes, as she listened to the sounds of Max running around upstairs.

A few seconds later, Max appeared in the kitchen doorway, dressed in a pair of navy blue jeans, with black tennis shoes, and a gray t-shirt, lugging his backpack downstairs behind him and dumping it near the front door, before hurrying towards the kitchen as he clipped his PokéGear and PokéNavi onto his pants.

"Hey Max," May said cheerfully as she waved at her brother. "Have a nice night?"

"'Morning son." Norman said not glancing up from his newspaper.

"Good morning, Max. How did you sleep?" Caroline asked pleasantly as she smiled at her youngest child, "Ready for your big day?"

"Yeah mom I slept great last night. But why didn't you guys come wake me up?" Max said while attaching Hyde's pokéball to his belt, as he glanced around the small room with an accusing look on his face directed at the other occupants, before his eyes focused on his sister who was still happily eating her breakfast, "May come on! You promised me that you'd give me a lift to Little Root using your Kadabra. We should have left at least half an hour ago!"

"Your not going anywhere, young man, until you sit down at the table and eat your breakfast," Caroline said as she faced her son, hands on her hips and a expression on her face that brooked no room for arguments, "You ___can't_ start the journey on an empty stomach."

"But ___mom_! I don't have ___time_ for breakfast right now." Max whined as he looked at his mother pleadingly, not moving from his spot by the kitchen door, as he glared at his sister who hadn't bothered to get up from her seat at the table yet, "It's 8:30, and I'm ___already_ late as it is, and somebody else is going to get ___my_ Treecko..."

"Max, don't ___panic_ so much, dear. Trust me. You're ___not_ late for the meeting with Professor Birch," Caroline ordered as she set down an extra plate of food at the table, and motioned for her son to take a seat, "Now come sit down and eat your breakfast."

"But..." Max whined as he finally, though a bit reluctantly took a seat at the table as his mom brought over a plate of food for him to him, "My Treecko..."

"Mom's right, Max,. You're ___not_ late." May piped in as she took another sip from her glass of orange juice, as she waved a hand towards the microwave to indicate the time, "We ___still_ have half an hour to get there, so don't have a cow already."

"What the..." Max said, confusion filling him as he looked at the clock which was now reading 7:23, "Is that the right time! My alarm clock said that it was ___already_ 8:00 when I woke up. so how..."

Max turned his attention towards May who was barely containing her giggles, narrowing suspiciously at her when her giggles stopped immediately as soon as she saw him looking at her, though there was still a ___big_ smile plastered on her face.

"_MAY!_" Max cried out, as he glared at his sister with anger blazing in his eyes, "Did you mess with my alarm clock!"

"What?" May asked innocently, as she grinned over at Max, before taking another bite out of her breakfast, "I was only trying to help get you up early."

"Now that's settled, come sit down and eat," Caroline insisted as she walked over to her son, and escorted him to his chair and pushed him onto the seat, "This is probably going to be the last time I'll see you in awhile while your off on your journey, and I want to spend as much time with you before you go."

"Fine mom," Max said, knowing he wouldn't be able to win this argument, as he grabbed a fork and started eating the food his mother had placed for him at super speed.

"Max honey, slow down before you choke on your food," Caroline scolded as she took a seat next to Norman after setting down her own plate of food on the table. "You'll make yourself sick eating that way."

"Sorry mom," Max said, as he started eating at a normal pace.

"So what are you planning to do Max? Are you planning on coming straight back here with May once you get your starter," Norman asked as he put his newspaper down, folding it up neatly and placing it to one side, "or do you plan on walking back on your own and catch Pokémon on the way?"

"I'm planning on making my way back here on foot, dad," Max said as he stopped to take a long drink from his glass of juice, "I figure that the sooner I start the journey the better."

"Oh then that means we won't see you for a couple of days before you make it back to," Caroline said unhappily, a small frown appearing on her features, "I was hoping you would come straight back with May once you received your starter."

"No way mom! I don't see the point in doing that," Max exclaimed, his fork stopping just inches from his mouth as he stared up at his mother, "I want to catch and train as many Pokémon as I can between Little Root Town and here, before heading for Rustburo city."

"Well if you're sure about that, honey, I wish you all the luck," Caroline said, smiling warmly at her son as he started eating again.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Max and May were now standing outside of their house while their mom was kissing and hugging Max as if she was afraid to let him go, while May was laughing at her brother's predicament.

Norman had already left to go open up the Gym early to get it cleaned up before any new trainers arrived. Before he left, he gave Max a navy blue badge case, with a red and white pokéball emblem on the lid, to hold the badges he won inside.

"Mom, I got to go. You'd think I'm never coming back by the way Your acting," Max insisted as he tried to pry himself from his mother's grip as she continued to hold him, "This is getting embarrassing."

"Sorry Max, but you know how I get emotional about these things, it's a mom thing." Caroline said tearfully as she finally released Max from her stranglehold, rubbing her eyes with her handkerchief, "You've grown up so much, Maxie. It seems like only yesterday you were simply just watching Pokémon matches on TV, and now here you are all set to start your own journey. I'm going to miss you while your gone."

"I know mom, but it's not like I'm going to be gone forever..." Max said as he rubbed his stiff neck, to try and get feeling back into it after his mothers little hug fest, "I'll miss you too."

"May you make sure Max gets to Little Root safely," Caroline said, as she turned to her eldest child with a stern look on her features. "Make sure he stays out of trouble and..."

"Mom I'm not going with Max on his journey," May said, frowning a bit at her mother, "I have to get back to Slateport City for the Pokémon contest tomorrow, so I can't be tagging along with Max."

"But couldn't you stay with him as far as Oldale city?" Caroline said as she returned May's frown, "So what if you miss the contest? It's just ___one_ Pokémon contest, out of how ___many_ more to come?"

"That's not the point, mom. I've been training hard with my Pokémon for this particular contest," May said, her frown deepening as she shook her head at her mother's request, "and I'm not planning on missing it."

"But couldn't you just show him the ropes until you both get back to Petalburg?"

"He already knows the ropes from his days traveling with Ash, Brock, and me, mom," May said, as she crossed her arm over her chest, "so he doesn't need anymore help in that department..."

"Mom, I don't need ___May_ to babysit me anymore!" Max said indignantly as he stared first at his mother then back at May, "I'm ___not_ eight years old anymore that I need someone older than me to keep me out of trouble on ___my_ journey."

"Well, if you're sure, Max. I just can't help worrying about you." Caroline said worriedly as she looked down at her son, before enveloping him in another bear hug as tears ran down her cheeks, "Just take care of yourself as you make your way back home okay? Call home when you have the chance with your PokéGear, and..."

"Mom, I have to go!" Max whined as he tried to break free of his mother's grip, and rushed over to stand by May once he was free, "If I stay any longer I'll be late, you know."

"Sorry Max," Caroline said, looking sad, as she gave her son one last look over, before breaking out into a wide smile, "Take care of yourself, Max, and I'll see the two of you in a couple of days okay?"

"Okay mom, see ya." Max and May called out just before May gave Houdini the order to teleport to Little Root Town, and the trio were gone in a flash of light.

* * *

Max and May appeared outside of Professor Birch's Pokémon lab in a flash of light, as Houdini stood in front of the duo.

"Thanks May, I'll see you later, okay?" and Max started running for the lab doors as soon as everything came back into focus, and pushed his way through the double doors.

"Max! Wait up!" May called out as she recalled her Kadabra, as hurried after her brother. "Thanks for the lift, Houdini."

It didn't take long for May to catch up with Max, and they both reached the main part of the lab at the same time, to be met by one of the professor's research assistants.

"Oh, hello there." The assistant said, as he greeted the two children who had just barged in, "Are you here to get your Pokémon today?"

"My brother here is." May said, as she bent over with her hands resting on her knees as she tried to catch her breath, "I'm just here for support. I'm May Stanton."

"That's nice to here." The assistant said, smiling as he stood up and walked over towards the duo, "I'm Daniel, and I help out the professor around the lab."

"Hey Daniel, I'm Max, and I'm here for my first Pokémon." Max said as he looked at the older man with a determined look on his features as he looked around the small room in search of Professor Birch but didn't see any sign, "Is the professor here?"

"The professor's in his office that in the back of the lab getting everything ready. You can just go through that door to talk with him," Daniel said as he pointed out which door they should go through, before turning back to Max and winked at the youth, "You're just in luck, Max. You haven't missed anything yet. You're the first ones to arrive."

"Thanks Daniel," Max called as he ran towards the open doorway, leaving his backpack behind with May, who had taken a seat in a nearby chair.

"Hey, guys. Look at who it is." A girls voice called from somewhere behind the two siblings, "Isn't that May? I ___thought_ I recognized whoever it was we saw running into the lab."

May turned around in her seat to see who was calling her while, and smiled when she saw who was walking up behind them.

Walking into the room were two boys and one girl around Max's age, each lugging backpacks behind them as they walked over to where May was sitting. May instantly recognized them as Kenny, Tommy, and Arisa from the Rustboro Pokémon academy that she had visited with Max, Brock and Ash a few years ago. She knew that Max still kept in contact with them over the vidphone or e-mail.

"Oh hey guys, long time no see. When did you get to Little Root Town?" May said, still smiling as the group walked over to her, "you here to get your Pokémon too?"

"We got here last night and stayed at the local Pokémon center that they just built a few weeks ago," Arisa said as she took a seat next to May and set her own backpack on the floor next to Max's, "Is Max here?"

"Yeah, he's already out in Professor Birch's office waiting for you guys to arrive," May said, as she glanced at each of the three preteens with interest, "How did you guys get here so soon? Rustburo City's a long way from here."

"Kenny's dad gave us a lift to Little Root yesterday," Tommy said, as he looked around the office room for a moment, "and we spent the night in the new Pokémon center they built."

"We decided to travel here together to get our Pokémon then decide whether or not we'd stick together afterwards." Kenny said, sounding sheepish as he looked down, "My parents insisted that I go on my Pokémon journey."

"Oh, okay..." May said softly, as she looked at Kenny thoughtfully, with a worried look on her features, "Have you gotten over your fear of Pokémon yet, Kenny?"

"It's a lot better than it was two years ago," Kenny said, as he grinned at May for a moment before looking away, "I think this journey might do me a lot of good."

"So where's Max and the professor, May?" Tommy asked, as he finally turned his attention back to the rest of the group, an impatient look appearing on his features, "Are they here?"

Kenny was the first to reach the door to the other office, and knocked.

"Come on in! The doors unlocked." Professor Birch's voice called from inside the office.

Pushing the door open, the trio entered the room to see Max was busy talking with Professor Birch, when the two turned to see who was coming in.

"Kenny! Tommy! Arisa! How's it going you guys?" Max said cheerfully, as he waved the group over, "Are you guys starting your journey's today too?"

"Hey Max, Professor Birch" Kenny said as he walked into the room.

"Of course we are." Tommy said, as he pushed back a lock of his brown hair from his eyes, as he glowered at Max, "I've waited all these years to start my journey and I'm not missing this chance now."

"Same here, Max." Arisa said as she walked over to where Max and Professor Birch were, smiling at the older man, "Hi Professor Birch, I hope we're not late getting here."

"No the three of you are on time. I already have the starter Pokémon ready to go," Professor Birch said, smiling broadly as he motioned the kids to follow him out of his office and back into the lab. "It'll be just the four of you starting out today."

"So which pokéball contains what Pokémon, Professor Birch?" Tommy asked, as he and the others came to a stop in front of the table.

"Well, maybe I can help you." Birch said as he smiled, while motioning towards the table holding four pokéballs. Once the four kids were gathered around, he started explaining each ball to them.

"That one," he said as he pointed to the middle pokéball that had a water symbol above the white lock, "is Mudkip. It is a water Pokémon." Birch then pointed to the middle one, that had a grass symbol on it. "This one is Treecko, a grass Pokémon." Birch pointed to the third pokéball that had a fire symbol, "Next, there is Torchic the fire Pokémon, and the last one... I thought I would give one of you a special treat when I chose this Pokémon to be one of the starters I was handing out today."

"What's so special about it?" Tommy asked, his curiosity peeked as he looked at the fourth pokéball with interest.

"How come there are four balls on the table professor?" Kenny cutting in to whatever the Professor was about to say next, as he pointed out the final pokéball on the table, "What's in that pokéball?"

"This last pokéball contains an Eevee. It's a Pokémon that was brought over from the Kanto region." Professor Birch said, smiling as he picked up the mentioned pokéball, "It's known as the Evolution Pokémon, because of it's unique ability to be able to evolve into five different types of Pokémon."

"Sounds cool," Kenny said, as he eyed Eevee's pokéball hopefully.

"I've recently started breeding these little guys in the lab, when I realized that with four of you coming in today, meant that I was going to be one starter Pokémon short." Birch said, shrugging his shoulders slightly as he looked at the four kids as they surrounded him, "So instead of making one of you wait another week to get their Pokémon, I'm using one of my Eevee's as the fourth starter."

"Now then, now that that's settled, lets get started. Which of you should go first?" Professor Birch said as a thoughtful look at the four children in front of him before his eyes settled on Max who was looking at him expectantly, "Well Max, since you were the first to arrive, why don't you chose first? Then Kenny can go second, Arisa third, and Tommy will be last."

"All right! Thanks Professor Birch!" Max cried out as he stepped forward and took the pokéball that had a leaf symbol etched into it. "I'll take Treecko!"

"I'm taking Eevee as my starter Pokémon." Kenny said, as he immediately reached out and took the fourth pokéball off of the table.

"Then I'll take Torchic." Arisa said as she took the ball with the fire symbol on top. "I've always liked Fire types."

"Guess I'll take Mudkip." Tommy said gleefully, as he took the pokéball with the water symbol on top, grinning as he looked down at the pokéball in his hand, "I can't wait to get out there to start my journey."

"Good. Now you need to do is take these too, and you'll be ready to start your journey," Birch said as he walked over to his desk and pulled out several small calculator sized computers, and came back and passed one to each trainer, "Here are your pokédex's, you can use this to give you information about a Pokémon. Just point it towards an unknown Pokémon and it will tell you what it is if it's on file."

"One more thing before you go." Professor Birch said as he moved back to the desk and pulled out small bags containing miniaturized pokéballs, and handed each bag to the kids, "Here are some pokéballs for each of you to start your journey with, so you will be able to catch Pokémon on your way to Oldale Town. After these run out, you'll have to buy your own from then on out. Now good luck with all of you on your journey."

"Thanks Professor Birch." The kids chorused simultaneously, as they headed out the door.

* * *

As the group walked out of the lab, they met up with May who was standing outside of the lab waiting for them with her Kadabra.

"Hey guys. That didn't take long." May said as she turned towards the group, as they came out of the lab, "So, what did all of you get for your starters?"

"I got Torchic for my starter Pokémon," Arisa said smiling as she held out her pokéball, "I've always wanted to have one as my starter."

"That's a great Pokémon. I started out with one two years ago," May said nodding her head at Arisa, before turning her attention back towards the boys, "I already have an idea of which Pokémon Max must have gotten, but what did the two of you get? Weren't there only supposed to be ___three_ starters available?"

"Yeah there was. I got Mudkip," Tommy said as he unclipped Mudkip's pokéball from his belt, "While Kenny was given a Kanto Region Pokémon called Eevee for his starter."

"Eevee? What kind of Pokémon is ___that_?" May asked, confusion filling her voice since she had never encountered the Pokémon before over the years. "I don't remember ever encountering one before. Can I see it, Kenny?"

"Sure. Come on out Eevee!" Kenny said as he pulled out Eevee's pokéball, and tossed it into the air, and Eevee appeared in a flash of light.

"Uii?" Eevee said, as it looked around in confusion at all of the humans in before it.

"It's so cute! I want an Eevee." May exclaimed, as she let out a squeal of delight as she stared down at the little fox Pokémon with stars in her eyes, "It'd be ___perfect_ for the Pokémon contests."

"Why don't you check out your pokédex and find out, sis?" Max said. "You did get it upgraded didn't you so it'll include the Johto and Kanto region Pokémon in it?"

"Yeah I did. Thanks for the reminder Max." May said as she pulled out her pokédex and pulled up the listing for Eevee.

**_EEVEE, THE EVOLUTION POKÉMON. FEMALE. ITS IRREGULARLY CONFIGURED DNA IS AFFECTED BY ITS SURROUNDINGS. ITS ABILITY TO EVOLVE INTO MANY FORMS ALLOWS IT TO ADAPT SMOOTHLY AND PERFECTLY TO ANY ENVIRONMENT._**

"'Ability to evolve into many forms'?" May asked as she looked up at the group, confusion still on her features. "That means it can evolve into different forms just like a Wurmple can, doesn't it?"

"Don't you know ___anything_ May?" Max asked, shaking his head ruefully, as he started explaining, "Eevee's are a really rare Pokémon. It has the power to evolve into one out ___five_ different Pokémon."

"Five? This I have to see." May said, as she had her pokédex pull up all of the data entries for Eevee and it's evolutions, "Espeon? I think I saw that one at a contest last month... I have to get some Eevee's. I want one for each evolution!"

"You might have to go to Kanto to get one sis..." Max said, sweat dropping just as the pokédex's computerized voice chimed in, "I don't think you'd find any in Hoenn unless there are people breeding them over here."

"Oh okay, then I will. As soon as this upcoming Contest is over, I'll go to Kanto." May said with a determined look on her face, as she put away her pokédex, and checked her wristwatch for the time, "Look you guys I've got to get going. So Max I'll catch up with you next time, okay?"

"Sure May, and good luck at the Pokémon contest," Max said.

"Thanks, Max." May said, and after a few quick goodbyes, May was gone via Kadabra's teleportation.

"Hey guys, why don't we introduce ourselves to our Pokémon and get some information on them from our pokédex's?" Arisa asked as she looked at her three companions, before tossing her pokéball into the air, "Come on out Torchic!"

With a loud ping, the pokéball popped open and released a red light, moments before Torchic materialized on the floor.

"Torchic?" Torchic chirped happily as he ruffled it's feathers as if to shake off the feel of it's pokéball, before looking up at it's new trainer.

"Oh he's so cute!" Arisa cooed as she looked down at her Pokémon happily, smiling as she bent down in front of the fire Pokémon, "Hi Torchic, I'm going to be your new trainer, and I hope we can be the best of friends."

"Torchic!" Torchic chirped happily as he walked over to Arisa and rubbed up against her legs.

"It feels soft," Arisa said as she reached down to pet Torchic as she pulled out her pokédex and pointed it at the fire Pokémon.

**_TORCHIC, THE CHICK POKÉMON. FEMALE. TORCHIC HAS A PLACE INSIDE ITS BODY WHERE IT KEEPS ITS FLAME. GIVE IT A HUG, AND IT WILL BE GLOWING WITH WARMTH. THIS POKÉMON IS COVERED ALL OVER BY A FLUFFY COAT OF DOWN._**

As Arisa talked with her Torchic, Max pulled out his pokédex and pointed it at the chick, so he could get it's stats added to his pokédex.

"Sounds like a good idea to me, Arisa," Tommy said, as he tossed out his own Pokéball, as he released his Mudkip, "Let's see what my Mudkip is like..."

"Mudkip mud?" Mudkip said as he looked around at the humans before it, before spotting Tommy holding it's pokéball, and padded over to him, "Mudkip..."

"Hey Mudkip, I'm going to be your trainer." Tommy said as he bent low to get a better look at the water Pokémon once it was standing in front of him, as he pulled out his own pokédex and pointed it at the water Pokémon, "It's nice to meet you."

**_MUDKIP, THE MUD FISH POKÉMON. MALE. THE FIN ON MUDKIP'S HEAD ACTS AS A HIGHLY SENSITIVE RADAR. USING THIS FIN TO SENSE MOVEMENTS OF WATER AND AIR, THIS POKÉMON CAN DETERMINE WHAT IS TAKING PLACE AROUND IT WITHOUT USING ITS EYES._**

Since Kenny had already let out his Eevee, he was now busy playing with it, as the others released their own Pokémon from their balls.

"Come on out, Treecko!" Max called out as he tossed out Treecko's pokéball and tossed it into the air, releasing it's occupant.

"Treecko?" Treecko said, as he looked up at his new master curiously, cocking it's head to one side as it looked up at Max, "Tree? Ko Tree..."

"Hi there Treecko. I'm Max. I'm going to be your knew trainer from now on. I hope we can be friends," Max said, smiling widely as he looked over his new Pokémon appreciatively, before holding out a hand to it, "How does that sound to you?"

"Tree?" Treecko asked a he looked at Max's outstretched hand for a few minutes, before glancing back up at Max with and placing his paw into Max's and gave the young boy a small smile and nodded his head, "Treecko."

"Good. I'd like to give you a name," Max pulled out his pokédex and pointed it at Treecko so he could hear it's stats while he thought of a name for it.

**_TREECKO, THE WOOD GECKO POKÉMON. MALE. TREECKO HAS SMALL HOOKS ON THE BOTTOM OF ITS FEET THAT ENABLE IT TO SCALE VERTICAL WALLS. THIS POKÉMON ATTACKS BY SLAMMING FOES WITH ITS THICK TAIL._**

"Okay." Max said as he thought a moment as he looked at Treecko thoughtfully, "How does the name Ganon sound to you?"

"Treecko Tree..." Ganon said, a pleased look appearing on his features as he smiled at Max.

"Well I should introduce you to another member of our party then," Max said as he reached for Hyde's pokéball and tossed it into the air, "Come on out Hyde!"

"Rowr?" Hyde said as he appeared on the ground in a beam of light, immediately getting into a fighting stance when he saw the grass Pokémon in front of him, thinking that it was it's battle opponent. "Poochy!"

"Relax Hyde, this isn't a Pokémon battle, he's not your opponent," Max said as he knelt down next to the dog Pokémon and put a restraining hand on him, "This is Ganon, and he's going to be a part of our gang from now on. I ___really_ hope you guys can get along."

"Rowr?" Hyde said, confusion filling his voice looked up at Max for a moment then back at Ganon, before settling down and padding over to the grass type, "Chy, poochy?"

"Treecko tree," Ganon said in response as he stared at the young dark type before it.

"Chyna poo," Hyde said as nodded his head at Max as he sat down a foot away from Ganon.

"Tree?" Ganon said as he looked the pup over for a moment before turning its back on Hyde and offered him it's tail, "Treecko."

Hyde looked at the offered tail for a moment, before getting up and placing his front paws on Ganon's tail, as he looked at Ganon and gave the grass type what looked like a smile on it's canine features, "Poochy!"

As Ganon and Hyde became acquainted with one another, Max pulled out his pokédex and pointed it at the dog Pokémon, deciding that he should get Hyde's information since he was already out.

**_POOCHYENA, THE BITE POKÉMON. MALE. POOCHYENA IS AN OMNIVORE, IT WILL EAT ANYTHING. A DISTINGUISHING FEATURE IS HOW LARGE ITS FANGS ARE COMPARED TO ITS BODY. THIS POKÉMON TRIES TO INTIMIDATE ITS FOES BY MAKING THE HAIR ON ITS TAIL BRISTLE OUT._**

"Whoa, is that a Poochyena?" Kenny's excited voice asked, causing Max and his Pokémon to turn back towards the other trainers who were now staring at the dog in awe. "When did you get it, Max?"

"I got him last night. May gave him to me before we went to bed," Max said as he looked back down at his Pokémon with a wide smile on his face, "She ran into some old friends of ours who's Mightyena had a litter of pups, and offered both of us one."

"What's wrong with it's coloring?" Kenny asked as he walked over and looked down at the dog Pokémon, "Poochyena aren't supposed to look the way this one does."

"Don't you know anything, Kenny?" Tommy scolded as he came over and bent down in front of Hyde, and offered a hand for him to sniff, "This isn't just any ordinary Poochyena, it's a Shiny one, which would explain why it's coloring is off."

"Oh yeah. I guess that would explain things." Kenny said, nodding his head as he also knelt in front of Hyde, "This is my first time seeing a Shiny Pokémon in person, Tommy."

"Rowr?" Hyde said looked at the two strange boys in front of it curiously; cocking his head to one side, before looking back at Max with a confused look on his canine features.

"It's all right Hyde," Max said, as he smiled down at the puppy, "These guys are friends too. This is Tommy, Kenny and Arisa."

"Treecko tree." Ganon suddenly said, as he walked over to a nearby tree and sat down, and motioned with a paw for Hyde to come over. Hyde quickly followed after Ganon and laid down next to him under the shade as the two waited for Max.

"Hey Max, why not have a Pokémon battle before we start out on our Pokémon journey?" Tommy suddenly said, smirking a bit as he stared at Max, "___My_ Mudkip against ___your_ Treecko in a one on one battle."

said "It's fine by me, Tommy!" Max as he turned towards Ganon and Hyde who had stopped talking amongst themselves to watch what was going on, "Hey, Ganon. You ready for your first Pokémon battle?"

"Treecko!" Ganon exclaimed as he walked over to stand at Max's side with a determined look on his face as he glared at Tommy and Mudkip.

"You guys we can't battle outside of the lab," Arisa exclaimed before the battle could start, "Why not wait until we're outside of town to battle?"

"She's right, Tommy." Max said as a worried looked appeared on his face as he glanced around, as he recalled Hyde into their pokéballs, "We don't want to damage anything if we battle now, so let's just leave town first."

"That's fine with me, Tommy said, as he scowled a bit at the interference in the battle, but could see where she was going with it, and started walking away, with Arisa and Kenny following behind, "Let's get this over with already."

"Come on, Ganon," Max said as he turned back to his Treecko who was now looking up at him with a curious look on it's features, as Max grinned down at the Gecko for a moment before he turned around to follow the others, "Let's get this over with, and show Kenny's who's boss."

"Treecko tree..." Ganon said as he quickly followed after his trainer.

* * *

As the group made their way outside of Little Root Town's city limits, as soon as they entered the forest, and after letting Hyde back out of his ball so he could watch the battle, Max and Tommy immediately started up their Pokémon battle.

"Be ready to loose Tommy!" Max said, a wide smile creeping over his features as he stared at Tommy, "I have the type advantage in this battle."

"We'll just see about that, Max." Tommy said as he nodded towards Mudkip who ran forward to face off with Treecko. "Go, Mudkip!"

"Ganon, Pound attack!" Max called out.

"Treecko!" Ganon cried as it charged at Mudkip with it's tail swinging towards it.

"Mudkip, dodge it and Tackle it!" Tommy cried.

Mudkip barely managed to avoid Ganon's downward tail swing, as it leaped to one side, then charged at Ganon, and knocking the grass type off it's feet.

"Ganon are you okay?" Max demanded, worry filling his voice as he stared at his downed Pokémon, while Hyde barked some encouragement to his new friend.

"Treecko tree..." Ganon said waving a paw at Max to show that he was okay, as he struggled back to his feet, and stood in front of Mudkip once more, eyes narrowed angrily.

"Growl!" Tommy shouted.

Mudkip growled and Ganon froze in his tracks as it momentarily cowered away from Mudkip.

"Ganon don't give up!" Max cried out, frustration filling him as he watched the battle, as he tried figure out which move he should have Ganon do next, "Try giving that Mudkip a Leer attack, then Pound it again!"

Breaking free of it's fear, Ganon launched another attack at Mudkip before it could react, landing a solid blow to Mudkip's side and sending the water Pokémon flying backwards into Tommy, with enough force to knock the other boy off his feet.

"Ooofff!" Tommy exclaimed as he landed on his backside, cradling the now unconscious Mudkip in his arms.

"Oh man! Tommy, are you okay?" Max exclaimed as he ran forward to check Tommy out, with Ganon and Hyde right behind him, "It was an accident, Ganon didn't mean to do that."

"Treecko, tree?" Ganon said, as he looked at Tommy with a worried expression on his features.

"I'm fine, just had the wind knocked out of me." Tommy wheezed, struggling to catch his breath as he pulled out Mudkip's pokéball and returned it, and shook off Max's attempts at helping him up, "I just didn't expect ___that_ to happen."

After seeing that Tommy was alright, Max turned back to Ganon to congratulate his victory, and see's that Ganon was leaning against a nearby tree with a smug look on his features, while Hyde was bouncing around barking at him.

"Good work Ganon, you should get some rest for the road ahead. You too Hyde," Max said, smiling a bit as he pulled out both Ganon and Hyde's pokéball's and recalled both Pokémon.

'_That was a great start for Ganon's first battle,_' Max thought happily as he reclipped the pokéball's to his belt. '_This is a perfect start for my journey..._'

"I'll catch you guys later at Oldale Town." Tommy suddenly said, "I've decided that I want to travel alone. I figured that I might be able to get more training done if that way."

"Hey, Tommy where are you going? Wait for us will you?" Kenny's voice called out suddenly, bringing Max out of his thoughts, "Weren't we going to travel together?"

Max turned his attention back to the others in time to see that Tommy was already back on his feet and, after dusting himself off and picking up his backpack, was starting to walk away.

"Change of plans, Kenny," Tommy said, as he glanced over at Kenny for a moment, before looking away and shifted his backpack onto his shoulders, "We never actually ___officially_ decided to travel together, remember?"

"Yeah he's right," Arisa said as she stepped forward, while holding her Torchic in her arms, shifting Torchic to one arm as she reached for it's pokéball and recalled it, "We only agreed we'd wait until ___after_ we got our starters to decide what we'd do."

"Your leaving too, Arisa?" Max asked.

"Well Tommy's got a point." Arisa said, as a slight blush crept up to her cheeks, as she looked at the three boys before her, "I think I want to try going it alone for awhile and see how it goes, before going in a group."

"Yeah but traveling in a group would be a lot of fun, not to mention you wouldn't get lonely on the road, plus you'll have help if something bad happens to you," Max said, as he glanced over at Kenny for a moment, "I traveled with my sis and our friends a couple of years ago, and it was a lot of fun."

"Says you Max. It sounds boring to me," Tommy sneered, as he looked at Max, "I can train more by myself and catch more Pokémon while I'm at it if I don't have anybody tagging along."

"Fine then. Hey, Kenny, do you want to travel together with me?" Max said, as he turned to grin at the dark haired boy, "I could use the company, and have someone to talk with."

"Sure, if that's what you want, Max." Kenny said, smiling a bit as he looked back at Max.

"Look Max," Tommy said as he turned his attention fully on Max, his eyes narrowing in a calculating look as he stared at the other boy, "I want to have a rematch the next time we meet up together. By then both of our Pokémon will be stronger.

"I'll be looking forward to it, Tommy." Max said.

"Well if we're going to split up, then do you guys have PokéGear's?" Max said as he pulled out his own PokéGear, "Maybe we can swap phone numbers so we can keep in contact with each other?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Arisa said as she pulled out a red and white PokéGear from her back pocket, "What's your phone number Max?"

Kenny and Tommy pulled out their own PokéGear's and in a few many, each trainer had the other's phone numbers logged onto their PokéGear's cell phone address book, and Kenny and Arisa took off into the forest with promises to meet up with Max and Kenny at the Pokémon Center in Oldale town, and set off.

**_To Be Continued..._**

**_Author's Notes:  
_**I came up with this idea after I haven't seen any Pokémon fan fiction involving Max when he started his Pokémon journey.

Kenny, Tommy, and Arisa all showed up in the Pokémon episode '_**Gonna Rule the School!**_'. I thought the three of them would make ___perfect_ friends/rivals/travel companions for Max as the story moves on.

I kind of see Tommy as being the Hoenn region's version of Gary Oak, since his attitude about certain things seemed to match Gary's ___old_ attitude, from what I saw of him in '_**Gonna Rule the School!**_' so he may become Max's rival.

**Max's Pokémon Team:**  
Treecko - Male - Ganon  
Poochyena - Male - Hyde

**Kenny's Pokémon Team:**  
Eevee - Female - Pearl

**Arisa's Pokémon Team:**  
Torchic - Female

**Tommy's Pokémon Team:**  
Mudkip - Male


	2. Chapter 1: On the Road Again Incomplete

**_Disclaimers:_** As much as I may ___want_ to claim ownership of this production, I can't because **_Pokémon_** belongs to a whole lot of different companies that I can't remember the names of at the moment. Any characters that appear in this fic that is not a part of the original series, belong to me so don't take them without asking first.

**_Summary:_** It's been two years since his adventures traveling through the Hoenn region with Ash, Brock, and May came to an end, and now it's time for Max to shine! Join Max as he travels through the Pokémon world in his search to become a Pokémon Master.

**Glossary:**  
"**bold**" Pokémon language  
_italics_ thoughts

**_Twice in a Lifetime_**  
Chapter 1: On the Road Again  
By: Princess Star Neko  


Max wondered around the forest outside of Little Root Town by himself. After a quick discussion, both he and Kenny had decided to split up and meet back at a nearby stream so they could catch some Pokémon on their own.

He had already managed to catch a Wingull, nicknamed Kiara, using Hyde, and two Wurmple, Duo and Matrix, using Ganon, and was now letting the grass type rest in it's pokéball while he let Hyde have another chance. Now the duo were now searching the area for more Pokémon, before heading back to meet up with Kenny.

Hyde was walking quietly beside him as they walked around the forest, when the dog suddenly stopped in mid step and perked up his ears as if listening for something.

"What is it, Hyde?" Max asked, stopping where he was, as he looked around for any sign of what his Pokémon might have heard, "Did you hear something?"

Hyde continued looking around the path, in search of whatever had caught his attention, while sniffing the air, before letting out a loud bark as he took off running towards some bushes and disappeared into them.

"Hyde! Wait up!" Max cried out as he ran towards the bushes, pushing his way through the bushes as he goes and getting injured in the process, "Where'd you go?!"

As he got past the bushes, he didn't see Hyde anywhere in sight, but could hear the dog's barking coming from somewhere nearby, when he suddenly heard what sounded like a Pokémon's distressed cry for help.

Following the sound to its source, he came upon the sight of Hyde jumping around a thorn bush, where a white skinned Pokémon with green 'hair' and two red horns sticking out of it's head, was struggling to get free from a thorn bushes.

"Ralts!" Ralts let out a pain filled wails as it was cut up by the thorns as it tried to get loose and away from the dog Pokémon in front of it.

_I can't believe it. A Ralts!_ Max thought as he pulled out his pokédex and pointed it at the Ralts. _What's it doing around here for? This areas not where they are normally found..._

_RALTS, THE FEELING POKÉMON. FEMALE. RALTS HAS THE ABILITY TO SENSE THE EMOTIONS OF PEOPLE. IF ITS TRAINER IS IN A CHEERFUL MOOD, THIS POKÉMON GROWS CHEERFUL AND JOYOUS IN THE SAME WAY._

_Poor thing needs help,_ Max thought as he put down his backpack, opened the flap and pulled out a Swiss Army knife, then started walking towards the thorn bush, "Hyde back off! Can't you see your scaring it?"

Hyde immediately backed away from the bush at the sound of the reprimand in his trainers voice, taking a few steps backwards and sat down with a unhappy look on his canine features.

At the sound of heavy footsteps on the forest floor, Ralts looked up and instantly froze at the sight of the human boy heading it's way, as it renewed it's struggles to get free before it was caught.

"Calm down Ralts," Max said soothingly as he bent in front of the thorn bush and started hacking at the branches that trapped Ralts. "I'm only here to help you out, not catch you. It wouldn't be right for me to do ___that_ when your like this."

"Ralts?" Ralts said as she stopped her struggles to look at the human curiously, immediately sensing the sincerity in the humans words as she relaxed.

After a few minutes, Max finally had Ralts free from the thorn bush and carried the now docile Pokémon in his arms as Ralts tiny hands clutched his shirt in a tight grip, back to his backpack where he sat Ralts on his lap as he sat down next to his pack, and pulled out one of his medicine bottles from his pack.

"Ralts?" Ralts asked as she looked at the bottle Max pulled out suspiciously, as she sat in his lap.

"This is Pokémon medicine called Full Restore. It'll help you heal faster. But it'll sting a bit." Max said as explanation as he held out the spray can for Ralts to inspect, before he started shaking it up and uncapped it, "As soon as you're healed you can go on your way, okay?"

Ralts nodded her head in understanding, then let out a tiny squeak of pain when the spray hit her cuts, her eyes widening in surprise as the cuts disappeared within seconds of coming in contact with the spray.

"See? That wasn't so bad was it?" Max said smiling a bit, as he gently set Ralts on the ground, and reached back into his backpack to return the spray can, and pulled out a tin filled with Pokémon food.

Scooping out a small handful of Pokémon food into his hand, he held it out to Ralts who looked at the offering warily.

"Here, go ahead and take it. A good friend of mine made this, so it should be pretty good," Max said, still smiling a bit as he held out the food towards Ralts, waiting patiently for the Pokémon to make the first move, "I don't know if you're hungry or not, but I thought you might want something to eat."

Ralts seemed to consider the offer for a few minutes, before stepping forward and lifting a small hand into Max's cupped hand, and picked up one of the pebbles of food, sniffed it for a second before popping it into her mouth and chewed on it a few moments before letting a happy cry of delight and started reaching into Max's hands for more.

"Like it, do you? I thought you would," Max said, as he held the Pokémon chow in one hand while Ralts continued grabbing pellets out of it, "Brock's a pretty good cook when it comes to both human and Pokémon food."

As Ralts continued eating the Pokémon food from his hand, Max poured what was left of the food into his left hand and continued holding it out to Ralts, as he used his free hand to pull out a napkin, and wrapped up the remaining pellets inside, and hands it to Ralts, who takes it with a questioning look on her features as she looked up at Max, as he stood up and picked up his backpack.

"Looks like I'll be seeing you Ralts. I promised I wouldn't capture you and I won't," Max said as he smiled down at Ralts, before turning on his heel, and started to walk away, "Try and keep out of thorn bushes next time."

"Ralts?" Ralts said, as she looked at the wrapped bundle of food that Max had just given her, then back at Max, as she held the bundle in her arms, as he retreating back.

* * *

Half an hour later found Max walking back the way he came, on his way back to where he was supposed to meet up with Kenny, as Hyde and Ganon walked beside him, when both Pokémon suddenly stopped in their tracks to look around the area. 

"Tree?"

"Rowr?"

"What is it you guys?" Max asked as he also stopped and watched his Pokémon, as he also looked around for any sign of what had caught the duo's attention, "Do you hear something?"

"Raaallltttsss...."

Max stopped dead in his tracks when he heard that familiar cry, as he looked around in search of where it came from before a faint rustling sound coming from some bushes.

After a minute or so, the Ralts Max had rescued earlier emerged from the bushes still clutching the napkin he had given her earlier, and came to a stop a few feet away from Max and others.

"Ralts!" Ralts said as she held up the napkin towards Max.

"No way Ralts. I told you already that the food's for you to eat. I have plenty more food where that came from, so I don't need it." Max said as he bent down to gently push the napkin back towards Ralts, "I want you to have it. Now I have I have to meet up with a friend of mine. I'll see ya later."

Standing back up, Max turned to continue walking in the direction he'd been heading, when he heard Ralts call out to him again.

Turning back around he saw that Ralts was still following him, and had stopped walking at the same time as he had and was now looking up at him with an expectant look on it's face, as she set the napkin down and pointed first at him then at his pokéball belt.

"What is it, Ralts? I thought I told you..." Max asked, confusion sounding his voice as he bent back down so he could look back at it, before understanding finally hit him, "Do you ___want_ to come with me and be my Pokémon? Is that why you won't stop following me?"

"Ralts!" Ralts exclaimed excitedly, nodding her head excitedly as she looked up at Max with a happy look on her face.

"Well, if your sure about that," Max said as a huge smile appeared on his features, as he pulled off an empty pokéball from his belt, bent down and gently tapped it on top of Ralts head, "Welcome to the team, Ralts."

The pokéball immediately popped open and sucked the psychic Pokémon inside, shook once before settling down with a loud ___ding_.

"What do you think, guys?" Max picked up the pokéball, and turned around to show it to Ganon and Hyde who moved back to stand at his sides, "We have ourselves a new member to the team."

* * *

_I wonder if Kenny's already here?_ Max thought as he finally arrived at the pond side, only to find that the other boy was already there waiting for his arrival, _Looks like he didn't do that badly on his own..._

Kenny was sitting on a tree stump with his Eevee resting on his lap while he ran a brush through her fur, while on the ground three Pokémon were busy eating the Pokémon food he had laid out. The new Pokémon with Kenny were an Azurill, a Taillow, and a scruffy looking Zigzagoon.

"Hey Kenny!" Max called as he ran the rest of the way to his friend, and came to a stop a few feet away from the other boy, "I'm sorry that I'm late meeting up with you but something came up. Have you been here for long?"

"Hey Max, It's okay. I haven't been waiting long." Kenny said, giving a slight shrug of his shoulders, when he looked up to see the other boy coming his way, and see his Eevee on the ground to go play, "I just got here a few minutes ago. So, how'd you do?"

"I caught two Wurmple, a Wingull, and a Ralts." Max said, as he pulled off his pokéballs and released his Pokémon, before sitting down and pulling off his backpack to get the food out and grinned over at his friend, "I see you didn't do that badly yourself, Kenny."

"Wow! Where did you catch a Ralts?" Kenny asked as he looked at the psychic Pokémon in surprise, "I didn't think you could find them around this area."

"I don't know what she's doing around here, but she was caught in a briar patch, and after I cut her loose, I let her go free," Max said as he looked over at his Pokémon who were now interacting with Kenny's Pokémon, as he pulled out his own food and sat on a nearby log, "'cause it didn't seem fair to catch her under the circumstances."

"If you let her go free, then why's she with you now?" Kenny asked as he pulled out his own lunch from his backpack, and took a seat next to Max on the log, "Or is this a different Ralts?"

"Nope. It's the same one." Max said as he looked over at Ralts as she hung back from the rest of the Pokémon as they played a game of tag, "I ran into her again on my way to meet you, and it turns out that she wanted to join my team so I caught her."

"Oh okay." Kenny said, before taking a bite out of his sandwich, and glanced back down at the rest of Max's Pokémon with interest, "Why'd you capture two Wurmples?"

"I want to try and get both a Beautifly ___and_ a Dustox. Their both cool evolutions." Max explained, sat down and started taking out food, "By the time their ready to evolve, I'm kind of ___hoping_ that ___one_ of them will evolve into a Silcoon and the other one into a Cascoon."

"Okay," Kenny said, as he took a sip from his can of soda, before turning his attention back to Max who was now eating out of a bag of chips he'd packed. "so where are we heading to next once we leave Oldale Town?"

"What do you mean?" Max asked as he glanced over at Kenny with a confused look on his face, as he offered the bag to Kenny who reached in and took a small handful of chips.

"Well, our ___first_ gym battle is going to be at your dad's in Petalburg City right?" Kenny asked as he popped one of the chips into his mouth, "Do you have any advice for how to get through his gym?"

"Here's my advice." Max said, as he shook his head, while popping another chip into his mouth, and chewed on it for a few seconds as a thoughtful look appeared on his face, "It'd be better if we ___skipped_ challenging my dad's gym, and work our way back to it ___after_ battling the other gyms."

"___Why_ don't you want to challenge your dad's gym first?" Kenny asked, confusion filling his voice as he looked at Max and waited for the other boys answer, "It'd make a lot more ___sense_ to do it ___now_ than ___later_ since we'll ___already_ be passing through."

"Because I ___know_ the kind of Pokémon my dad uses in the gym. He specializes in Normal-type Pokémon, and ___all_ of them are at ___really_ high levels," Max explained, as a worried look appeared on his face as he glanced over at their Pokémon who were still playing amongst themselves, "If we challenge him ___now_, ___our_ Pokémon wouldn't stand a ___chance_ against ___his_ this early in our Pokémon journey."

"His Pokémon are really ___that_ strong?" Kenny asked, his eyes widening in surprise as he saw the serious expression on Max's face.

"Yeah. We'll need a ___lot_ of training," Max said, as he finished off the last of the chips and crumpled up the bag, and put the bag into his backpack to throw away later, "before we'll even stand a ___chance_ of taking on my dad and ___winning_."

"You know, Tommy, you should try catching a grass type or a water type before we reach Rustboro and challenge Roxanne," Max said as he looked over Tommy's group of Pokémon as they interacted with his own, "Against her Rock and ground types you won't have a chance."

"Yeah, I know, But it'll be some time before we get to Rustboro, so I'm not worried," Tommy said with a slight shrug of his shoulders as he turned to grin and Max, "I have plenty of time to try and catch either type before then."

"With my Wingull and Treecko, I'll already be set by the time we get there." Max said

While the two boys talked, Ralts approached Max once she was out of her pokéball, and pulled on his pants leg to get his attention, and Max looked down at her a moment before bending down to pick her up and placed her on his lap.

"That reminds me," Max said, as he looked down at Ralts as she rested in his lap, as a thoughtful look appeared on his features, "I haven't given you a name yet."

"Ralts?" Ralts said as he looked up at Max in confusion, cocking her head to one side as she looked up at him.

"Well I give all of my Pokémon names, instead of simply calling them by their species names," Max said as he lifted Ralts up so that they were now looking each other directly in the eyes, "it'd make it easier in case I caught more than one of the same species. So, would you like a name too, Ralts?"

"Ralts!" Ralts said, nodding her head excitedly as she smiled up at Max.

"Okay, then I'll call you Jade." Max said just as the rest of his Pokémon finished off the last of their food and came over, and Max smiled down at them as he turned Jade around so she could get a look at the others, "Hey you guys. Hyde and Ganon have already met her, but I'd like the rest of you to meet the newest member of our team, Jade."

The Pokémon all greeted Jade as they gather around Max, before they pulled away from him a moment later to go play with Kenny's Pokémon, inviting her to come join them, but she refused to be moved from Max's lap.

"I see that Jade has already become attached to you, Max," Kenny said, as he watched the psychic Pokémon sit on Max's lap, who was now chatting with Azuril who had wondered over, and was sitting on her tail.

"I know, it's just that I've always had a knack for making friends with Pokémon, even ones that are still living out in the wild," Max said, a rueful sigh escaping his lips, as he looked back at the Pokémon, as he gently placed a hand on top of Jade's head, "I sometimes wish I could be able to talk to Pokémon, and be able to understand exactly what their saying to me."

"Yeah it'd be cool if we could understand what Pokémon really are saying, I'd guess," Kenny said, when suddenly his eyes widen in shock when he glanced back at Jade, "Max watch out!"

"What?" Max said as he turned his gaze away from Kenny to try and see the source of his warning, when a sudden flash of white light hit him, causing him to cry out more in surprise than pain as the power behind the light washed over his body.

_What happened?_ Max wondered as everything around him suddenly started to go black, as he felt his body start to fall as he heard Kenny's and the Pokémon's panicked cries, _Why did Jade attack me for..._

* * *

"**You sneaky little brat! What did you do to Max?!**" 

"**I didn't do anything wrong! I was only trying to help!**"

"**How? By knocking him out cold?! That's really helping! Your just lucky he's okay or else I'd...**"

Max came back to consciousness to find himself flat on his back on the grass, and looking up at the sky in confusion. As his mind cleared more he thought he could hear what sounded multiple voices arguing from somewhere close by, but didn't recognize any of them.

_Wha... What happened? How did I wind up on my back?_ Max wondered to himself as he tried to sit up, only to let out a low moan when the sudden movement caused his head to start spinning, _Oh yeah. Now I remember. Ralts did something and..._

"Max! Are you okay?" Kenny voice cried out, when he saw that the other boy was now awake, "You had us all worried for awhile there."

"Not so loud, Kenny. My head hurts," Max whined, as he closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again to look back up at Kenny with a worried look on his face, "What happened? And how long was I out for?"

"Not long, probably just a minute or two. I don't really know what happened. One second we were talking," Kenny said shaking his head as he looked back at Max with a worried look on his face, "then Ralts was pointing a glowing hand at you, then there was a flash of light, and next thing I know you were lying on the ground out cold. How do you feel?"

"Like a Snorlax fell asleep on top of me," Max said, as he focused more on his surroundings, as he looked around in search of the other voices he was hearing, "Hey, is someone else here with us?"

"Nope it's just us here along with the Pokémon," Kenny said, confusion on his face as he looked down at Max, and reached down to steady the other boy when he tried to sit up, "Why do you ask?"

"That's weird. I thought I heard voices when I woke up," Max said as he gratefully accepted Kenny's help as he sat up, and looked around for the Pokémon, "Where's Jade?"

"After you collapsed from whatever Ralts did, Hyde and Ganon group tackled her." Kenny said, as he looked over at something on Max's left side, "Now Hyde's got her pinned on her back."

Max slowly pushed himself up, and looked towards where Kenny was staring at, to see that Hyde indeed had the psychic type Pokémon pinned to the ground, his fur sticking up and teeth bared angrily as he glowered down at Ralts who was squirming underneath him. Ganon and the rest of Max and Kenny's Pokémon were surrounding the two when he stopped dead in his tracks, when a somewhat familiar voice cried out to him in panicked tones..

"**Max! Tell Hyde to get off of me!!**" Jade cried as she looked over at him from her spot on the ground, "**They're going to hurt me if you don't call them off.**"

_Did I really just hear that?_ Max thought, blinking a bit as he tried to clear his mind, as he stared at his Pokémon in shock. _It's impossible. She couldn't' have spoken in English just now, yet..._

"**Why are you calling for Max's help for? He can't understand you.**" Hyde asked as he kept his paws on Jade's back to keep her on the ground, "**You're just lucky Max is awake now.**"

_Now I'm sure I heard that,_ Max thought to himself as he glanced over at Kenny and saw that the other boy didn't seem to notice anything different.

"Kenny, do the Pokémon sound... different to you?" Max asked in a low whisper so the Pokémon wouldn't hear him.

"Different? How?" Kenny asked as he gave the other boy a confused look on as he helped Max stand up, as he turned his gaze back on the Pokémon for a moment, "They don't sound any different than they always have."

"**That's impossible, there's no way he can understand us now,**" Ganon said, as he crossed his spindly arms over his chest over his, "**Human's can't understand Pokémon speech.**"

All of the Pokémon nodded their heads in agreement as they turned their gazes on Jade who was still looking towards Max with a hopeful look on her face.

"Guess again Ganon," Max said, a rueful smile appearing on his face, as all of the Pokémon turned their gazes back on him with surprised looks, "I can understand what you just said perfectly."

"**What?!**" Hyde yelped, as he eyes stared intently at Max in surprise, while keeping a firm paw on Jade's back to keep her in place, "**It can't be.**"

"Max, are you okay?" Kenny asked as he looked worriedly at Max a moment then looked back at the Pokémon, and saw the stunned looks on each Pokémon's face, "What going on?"

"Don't ask me," Max said as he rubbed the back of his head tiredly, as he looked back at the group of Pokémon as they stared at him, before glancing over at Kenny, "It seems that I can understand exactly what our Pokémon are saying now."

"**how can you understand us now, Max?**" Ganon asked as he walked over to his trainer, as a curious look appeared on his reptilian features.

"We're going to have ask Jade that, Ganon," Max said, turned to look at the dog Pokémon, raising his voice a bit so he could be heard over the commotion the other Pokémon were making, "Hyde! Let her go already. Except for a minor headache that's already going away, I'm okay."

"**Aw, do I have ta?**" Hyde whined as he looked over at Max with a worried look on his canine face as he glanced over at Max, before finally stepping off of Jade's back, with a grumbled "**All right fine.**"

Walking over to the group, Max bent down to lift Jade up into his arms, and looked down at her tear-filled eyes as she looked back at him with a worried look on her face. "Jade what did you do?"

"**You said that you would like to be able to understand us, so I gave you the ability to do so,**" Jade said as she reached up with her arm to rub at her tearing eyes, as she looked back up at Max, with worried eyes shining from under her green hair, "**your not mad with me are you?**"

"I'm not mad, at least not completely," Max said, sighing a bit as he reached up with one hand to rub his forehead warily, before looking back down at Jade as she stared up at him, "Though a little ___warning_ would have been good you know."

"**I didn't mean for you to get knocked out because of it.**" Jade said, as she looked away from Max, and refused to meet his gaze, "I didn't meant o hurt you like that. I didn't think..."

* * *

A few hours later found Max and Kenny reaching the hill that looked over Oldale Town, and the duo both let out a sigh of relief, as they looked down at the city below. 

"We're finally here. I thought we'd never get out of that forest," Max said, a huge grin appearing on his face as he glanced down at the city, as he dropped his pack to the ground and stretched a bit, and immediately saw the Pokémon Center that was on the edge of town, "Hey I see the Pokémon center."

"I was beginning to wonder if we'd ever get out of that forest." Kenny said with a moan, as he glanced over at Max, while shifting his backpack into a more comfortable position on his back, "I just want to find a place to eat and sleep for the night. I wonder where the hotels are?"

"We don't have to worry about finding a place to stay for the night, as long as there's a Pokémon Center in town," Max said, as he bent over to retrieve his backpack and pushed his arms through the straps, "All Pokémon centers ___always_ lets trainers spend the night for free if we ask. Plus there's free food."

"That's great news," Kenny said as a wide smile appeared on his face, as they started walking down the hill, "I wonder if Tommy and Arisa have gotten here yet?"

"We'll have to wait until we get to the Pokémon center and find out," Max said, with a slight shrug of his shoulders as he started walking down the hill, passing by some old ruins on the way.

As they walked by, Max glanced over at the ruins for a moment with a thoughtful look on his face as they passed by. He could see a sign posted up in front of the ruins warning trainers to be careful inside.

_I wonder if those are the same ruins May told me about a few years ago,_ Max thought silently to himself as he continued walking after Kenny who had gotten ahead of him, _I guess they must have opened it up to the public, because of the Pokémon that were discovered in there._

**_To Be Continued..._**

**_Author's Notes:  
_**Sorry guys for the long wait in updating this story, but I hope that this chapter makes up for it. grins So what do you think of it? Review please.

What do you guys think about my giving Max the ability to understand what Pokémon say? I figured it'd be easier than just typing up what they say in their native language full time.

**Max's Pokémon Team:**  
Treecko - Male - Ganon  
Poochyena - Male - Hyde  
Wurmple – Female – Matrix  
Wingull – Female - Kiara  
Wurmple – Male – Duo  
Ralts - Female - Jade

**Kenny's Pokémon Team:**  
Eevee - Female - Pearl  
Taillow – Male – Spiral  
Azurill – Male – Quasar  
Zigzagoon - Female

**Arisa's Pokémon Team:**  
Torchic - Female  
Poochyena – Female  
Lotad – Female  
Surskit – Male

**Tommy's Pokémon Team:**  
Mudkip – Male  
Wurmple - Female  
Poochyena - Male  
Zigzagoon - Male


End file.
